Boxing PPV Schedule 2026: Jake Paul Eyes Ngannou Return

Jake Paul is targeting a rematch with Francis Ngannou as his next entry on the 2026 Boxing PPV Schedule, despite recovering from a broken jaw suffered in his December KO loss to Anthony Joshua. Most Valuable Promotions CEO Nakisa Bidarian confirmed Monday that Paul plans to return to the ring, setting up what would be one of the year’s most-watched bouts. That news lands just days before a stacked April 5 card in London.

Sunday, April 5 brings Caroline Dubois and Terri Harper to Olympia London in Kensington to unify the WBC and WBO lightweight world championships, broadcast on Sky Sports. Ellie Scotney faces Mayelli Flores in a separate women’s world title contest the same night. Two very different narratives collide across the spring calendar — one fighter plotting a comeback on the heavyweight fringe, another pair of women’s champions chasing undisputed glory.

Paul vs. Joshua: What Happened in December

Jake Paul’s December 2024 bout with Anthony Joshua ended in a sixth-round stoppage, a result that surprised many observers who expected Paul to fold far sooner. Paul not only accepted a fight with a former undisputed heavyweight world champion but lasted deep into the contest before being halted — an outcome that shifted how the boxing world perceives the YouTube-turned-professional prizefighter.

The physical damage was real. Paul sustained a broken jaw in that stoppage defeat, forcing a recovery stretch before any serious training could resume. He absorbed punishment across multiple rounds yet showed enough defensive awareness to survive into the sixth — a feat few credentialed heavyweights would have predicted before the opening bell. His willingness to take that fight at all earned grudging respect from corners of the sport that had dismissed him as a novelty act.

Paul has consistently sought opponents who carry genuine knockout credentials rather than padding his ledger against soft opposition. Ngannou, who famously flattened Ciryl Gane and rocked Tyson Fury, fits that profile exactly — which either speaks to Paul’s confidence or his promotional instincts, possibly both. Three of Paul’s last four opponents held legitimate combat-sports titles before stepping in with him, a pattern that separates his record from the celebrity-boxing circuit he once inhabited.

Why the Boxing PPV Schedule Has Room for Paul vs. Ngannou

Jake Paul’s confidence heading into a potential Ngannou matchup is blunt and specific. Paul told Sky Sports News that he views Ngannou as a poor technical boxer and predicted he would stop the Cameroonian power-puncher the same way Joshua did — by knockout. That is a striking claim given Ngannou’s history of one-punch devastation in MMA and his credible showing against Fury in their 2023 crossover bout, where Ngannou dropped Fury in the third round before losing on a split decision.

Most Valuable Promotions has built its business model around high-profile pay-per-view events, and Ngannou — a former UFC heavyweight champion with a global audience — checks every commercial box. The fight would pull MMA viewers, boxing audiences, and the social-media crossover crowd that Paul has cultivated since his YouTube days. From a pure pay-per-view strategy standpoint, it is a clean pitch to any broadcaster or streaming platform shopping for a late-summer tentpole.

A fair counterargument exists. Ngannou’s lone professional boxing defeat came to Joshua, but he dropped Fury — one of the sport’s most durable heavyweights — in Riyadh. Paul’s chin was already tested thoroughly across six rounds against Joshua, and Ngannou’s right hand remains among the most dangerous single punches in combat sports. Bidarian’s camp has previously struck distribution deals with both DAZN and Netflix, so the broadcast home for a Paul-Ngannou fight on the 2026 Boxing PPV Schedule is genuinely open.

April 5 Card: Dubois and Harper Unify at Olympia London

Caroline Dubois and Terri Harper will contest both the WBC and WBO lightweight world championships on Sunday, April 5, at Olympia London in Kensington, with coverage on Sky Sports. The card also features Ellie Scotney against Mayelli Flores in a women’s world title contest at super-bantamweight. For fans tracking the pay-per-view fight calendar this spring, the April 5 date represents the most significant women’s lightweight unification bout of 2026 to date.

Caroline Dubois, younger sister of heavyweight Daniel Dubois, has been one of British boxing’s most closely tracked prospects since her decorated amateur career, which included a gold medal at the 2018 Youth Olympic Games. Terri Harper, a former super-featherweight world champion who stepped up in weight, brings championship pedigree and a professional style built around tight defense and sharp counter-punching. Both fighters carry enough name recognition to anchor a major Sky Sports broadcast, and a unification fight at a storied London venue adds genuine prestige to the wider Boxing PPV Schedule this spring.

Scotney’s presence on the same card gives the event three separate world title storylines in a single night — a rarity on any domestic schedule. British women’s boxing has drawn record Sky Sports viewership figures in recent years, and a triple-title card is the kind of programming that drives subscription numbers as much as it rewards existing fans.

Key Developments

• Most Valuable Promotions CEO Nakisa Bidarian — not Paul himself — made the official confirmation of Paul’s planned ring return after the Joshua defeat.
• Paul’s exact words to Sky Sports News described Ngannou as a “terrible boxer” and stated he would knock him out “like Anthony Joshua did” — language calibrated to generate headlines and pressure Ngannou’s camp into accepting terms.
• The April 5 London card pairs a 135-pound unification bout with a separate super-bantamweight world title fight, creating a double-header of championship action on the same night.
• Ngannou’s October 2023 fight with Fury drew an estimated 1.5 million pay-per-view buys across platforms, a figure that underlines his commercial draw for any potential Paul matchup.
• Ellie Scotney holds the IBF super-bantamweight belt and appears on the April 5 undercard against Flores, adding a third world title narrative to what Sky Sports is marketing as a major spring event.

What Comes Next on the Fight Calendar

No official date or venue has been set for a Paul-Ngannou fight as of March 24, 2026. Bidarian’s confirmation establishes intent, not a signed contract, and Ngannou’s team has not publicly replied to Paul’s challenge. Crossover events of this scale typically require negotiations across multiple broadcasters and several months of promotional build — meaning a summer or fall 2026 slot is the most realistic window once Paul’s jaw clears medical review.

Most Valuable Promotions generated an estimated $95 million in combined pay-per-view revenue across its 2024 and early 2025 events, according to industry tracking data, a number that gives the company real leverage when shopping broadcast rights. Paul’s ability to move units regardless of opponent means platforms will engage quickly once terms are circulated. The April 5 Dubois-Harper card gives the Boxing PPV Schedule an immediate appointment while the Paul-Ngannou negotiation plays out behind closed doors.